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Decorator Cornwall questions


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The finish for "BB" was/is VALSPAR semi-gloss (#40 sheen) black lacquer. First lacquer primer, then 2 coats of the laquer, then a clear coat of #40 sheen clear coat. The Valspar lacquer is/was sold to Klipsch in 55 gallon drums, pre-diluted for spraying, and has a proprietary part number. That is, of course, impractical for doing a couple of speakers. During research into the Heritage finishes, I had some long conversations with the factory, and basically you can duplicate that finish using Valspar semi-gloss which is a #40 sheen, diluted about 10% with lacquer thinner. The results will be virtually identical. The products required will likely be special order from a Valspar distributor, and will be expensive (minimum order for me was one gallon).

You will need a "gun" (HVLP type), a clean dry air compressor, mask, etc for safety to spray lacquer.

The alternative (and it works very well....) is Ace Hardware's "sparkling black" exterior latex, semi-gloss. Sold in gallons. About $25. It can be diluted about 5% with a suitable latex thinner, and...... can be rolled with a very small, 6" short nap roller available from Home depot. The rollers are "pink" and sold in 10 packs. Surface prep is #400 grit sanding with an orbital, then #600. Practice before you do it. The finish is virtually identical, and can be easily and inexpensively re-done after a few years. Care is the same as lacquer; clean damp cloth and that's it.

Hope that helps.

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Hey that is my speaker [:)] Just so you know they started life as plain birch and somewhere down the line they were stained an ugly dark brown. I basically sanded down the entire cabinet and laid a couple coats of plain old Behr flat black on them so nothing special and certainly not anything "official". I love how they came out though and the finish has held up for all these years. I was going to put a half grill on them to protect the woofer but haven't gotten around to that yet.

On another note if you are like me and do not like the greying paper woofer cone you can use some old school black india ink and a foam brush to "dye" the speaker cone back to a nice dark black. One of the best experiements that I ever did for those speakers [:)]

Laters,

Jeff

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